~ Novelist

Monthly Archives: July 2013

I’m not certain why I didn’t adopt this habit earlier in my reading career (yes, that’s how I think of it these days…reading is career). There are hundreds of books I’ve read which enthralled me, impressed me, brought me laughter and tears, and left me wanting more. An almost universal impulse was to sit down with the author and thank her or him for the effort poured into their work. For very practical reasons in the not-too-distant past, that would have involved writing a letter, sending it to the publisher, and hoping that it made its way into the author’s grateful hands. On a very rare occasion, I did just that, but only rarely. Thank you World Wide Web!

Accomplishing that small note of praise these days requires nothing but an Internet connection and a few moments. In only the past few months I have reached out to authors whose work I admired and sent them brief notes, thanking them for the creativity of their work and praising their talent. The reaction has been more heartwarming than I might have imagined. I’m a writer and I know the solitude of the craft. Sometimes the only other human to whom I speak during a day (I admit…I talk to myself) is my wife, and while those conversations are always interesting and challenging (yes…that is blatant CYA), contact with others can be rewarding and inspiring. A small sampling of the authors I’ve contacted recently illustrates my point. Catherine Ryan Hyde, Cynthia Hamilton, Emme Rollins and Richard Mason. I read novels they had written and was so moved by the work that I found them on Facebook, or contacted them through their websites. I was prepared for a delayed thank you, a short note of appreciation. But each responded more warmly than I would have anticipated, citing the gratitude that someone would have taken the time to provide feedback, and offering their thanks for my comments.

In each case, their fiction stimulated me, touched me emotionally and influenced me…they are each talented and creative writers whom I have grown to respect. That respect and admiration are enhanced by the graciousness with which they replied to me, letting me see how much it meant to them to receive reader feedback. Reviews, as all writers understand, are important to increasing readership and hence potential sales, but the correspondence between reader and writer takes that effort a step further. Writers appreciate reader contact. It makes their day, boosts their morale and makes the lonely effort of sitting at a keyboard and bleeding words onto the “page” worth it. I’ve been moved by the responses I’ve received to even the briefest of notes to an author whose fiction I have appreciated. I encourage you to do the same.

The next time you finish a book you enjoyed, that affected you, provided you with insight, impressed you…take ten minutes to find that author’s contact information and send an e-mail, a Facebook message. Their gratitude will make your day, much as your appreciation made theirs.

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My short story, “Teddy Schreck’s Dreams,” has been published in Chicago Literati (click the image to the left to access the story) a blog dedicated to Chicago’s literary community and expertly edited by Abby Schaeffer. The story is an excerpt adapted from the first chapter of my most recent novel, The Dreams of Teddy Schreck, which will be published in early August.

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The sense of accomplishment in completing the draft of a new novel ranks among the best sensations…definitely in the top ten.

The idea for The Dreams of Teddy Schreck grew out of a fascination with the explosion of blogs, and the topics they address. The novel’s namesake lives across a park from a woman who blogs about atheism, about how religion harms people…in her belief. She begins to receive threats beyond the biting comments on her blog which lead Teddy Schreck to fear for her safety. Teddy is a retired salesman, the father of two daughters, who has lived a sedate, safe life. The urge to become the hero in his friend’s dilemma proves too powerful to resist and what had been contained as a cyber-battle on the blog leaks into the real world.

In my first novel, A Life Without Grace, the main character lived in a seemingly idyllic neighborhood, Iske Park. The houses ringed the park in a U-shaped, secluded enclave. I drew inspiration for the setting from my own neighborhood. In a later work, Harmony House, the park persists as a location, but the focus on people shifted to another park resident. Without intending such, I have written a trilogy of novels which use Iske Park and its residents as a the setting and characters.

In A Life Without Grace, the character of Grayson Eilers stubbornly ignored the tethers of family, and by the end of the book, I had grown less and less fond of him. In Harmony House, I cast the protagonist, Dan Boyle, in a purposefully unflattering light. He also strove to untether himself not only from family, but from friendships and other relationship. I didn’t, and still don’t, like him very much either.

I like the character of Teddy Schreck quite a bit. His intentions are noble. He has a good heart even though he ignores his limitations. Of course, you know what they say about good intentions…

So now begins the editing period. Typos, inconsistencies, omissions, additions…all addressed with dispassion. Often tougher than writing. Look for the publication next month.

And also look for the publication of an excerpt of the first chapter, rewritten as a short story, “Teddy Schreck’s Dreams,” soon to be published in Chicago Literati, an amazing blog by Abby Sheaffer at http://www.chicagonow.com/chicago-literati.